The Lifestyle of a Fan and Sword
by buttsandguts
Summary: For Sokka, family came first. Always. He would do anything to protect Suki and his three children. But like everything else in his life, it was difficult at times. But it was all worth it by the end of the day.
1. Duties

If you had told him at age fifteen that one day he would be a father of three children, Sokka would have told you that was predictable. With his bloodline status of soon-to-be chief of the Southern Water Tribe (and not to mention his handsome looks and manly flair), that was to be expected of him. Heck, he would probably have more than three! And all of them would be boys, of course. No doubt about that.

If you told Sokka when he was eighteen, the young man would have puffed his chest up with pride. As a war hero and a newly engaged man, the mere thought of Suki carrying his child made Sokka feel tingly and warm inside. However, they were planning to hold off on having kids for a while. What with helping Zuko and Aang rebuild peace between the four nations, they already had quite the load to handle. Besides, they were still young. They still needed some more time to spend together. Babies could wait…oh, and he wouldn't mind having at least one girl…

If you told him at age twenty, Sokka wouldn't have even listened to you. He was just too in total awe of his baby girl. Suki absolutely glowed during her pregnancy. Sokka never thought she could look anymore beautiful. Just the way her stance was made him blush, the smile that crept upon her face whenever she glanced down at her swelled stomach.

Sokka would never forget how Suki practically lit up the whole tent as she swaddled their newly born infant in her arms. Tears streamed down the Kyoshi warrior's pale face as she caressed her daughter's auburn tuft of hair. She glanced up at her husband sitting next to her on the cot, her blue eyes glistening as more happy tears formed.

"Oh, Sokka…she's _beautiful_..." Suki held her baby closer to her chest as the baby let out soft cooing sounds.

Sokka's eyes welled up with his own tears of pure joy, leaning down to press his lips to his wife's temple. He then softly began to glide his palm up and down his daughter's warm cheek as she continued to make tiny, little sounds.

"Yeah…she is…" Sokka then cracked a grin, putting his arm around Suki. "The boys are gonna wish they had never met you, Atka, 'cuz your daddy has already decided that no one is good enough for you, baby girl!"

If you told Sokka at age twenty-eight, he would believe you in a heartbeat. It made perfect sense…

That year had been the couple's tenth wedding anniversary, a big one in their book and everyone else's. Zuko treated them both to a week's get away at his family's newly revamped vacation home in Ember Island, plus Auntie Katara and Uncle Aang offered to take care of Atka and Tikani. At first, Suki felt guilty for leaving her children with Aang and Katara, what with them already taking care of two children of their own and Katara just finding out another new baby was on the way. But the water bender simply smiled and waved Suki off, claiming that it honestly was no trouble. And so with that, Sokka and Suki took off for their adventure in Ember Island, finally having 'true' alone time together…

Their days consisted of lounging around on the beach, swimming in the crystal clear ocean, cliff diving (much to Sokka's chagrin), shopping around town and picking out souvenirs for their little girl and boy. Their nights usually started off with dinner, a walk on the beach, and sometimes they dared to venture off back into the town. Nightlife on the island had become more popular throughout the years, which intrigued Sokka more so than his wife.

"C'mon, Suki! It'll be fun!" Sokka begged to his wife on their second day on vacation, dramatically pleading with her with his hands clasped together. Even though he was technically an adult, Sokka still acted like the same goof Suki had met all those years ago. The warrior crossed her arms and gave her husband a look that read she wasn't buying into it. She turned to a mirror and began to let loose her bun, a signal to Sokka that she was getting ready for bed. Sokka quickly stepped in front of the mirror and grasped his wife by the shoulders with pleading eyes.

"Come on, honey…for _me_?" Sokka played up, giving his wife a tender kiss on the cheek and sliding a wandering hand down her back. Suki didn't fall for his usual 'ooey gooey' romantic tactics in order to get his way, raising a thin brow up in disapproval. Sokka knew he was failing miserably and let out a sigh, moving his hand up to her warm cheek. He knew that she was worrying about the kids; he could see it on her face. It seemed to affect her more at night than during the day.

"Suki, this is like our second honeymoon! Listen, I know you're thinking about Atka and Tikani—and I am too, don't get me wrong—but we should be living this vacation up! I mean, this time next week we'll probably be trying to stop Tikani from picking his nose and telling Atka to put away her books and go to bed all through the night. Besides, I hate to say this, but…we won't be young forever. We don't get to relax and be carefree too much anymore. I wanna see the girl who was with me the last time we were here over ten years ago…can you find her inside you?" Sokka placed his forehead to his wife's, cracking a loving grin across his lips as he spoke nostalgically. He knew she wouldn't be able to resist his smolder not matter how hard she tried.

Yet again, Suki tried her best not to succumb to Sokka, but what he said hit her straight to home. They weren't going to be this young forever; they were on the cusp of thirty, which was difficult for both of them to believe. Tikani would soon be turning five years old and Atka would be eight, and the beginning of her training to become a Kyoshi Warrior was nearing. Sokka would be performing his council duties and visiting the Southern Water Tribe off and on throughout this time while Suki would be staying in Kyoshi Island with her children for Atka's training. The couple would be parting ways in just a matter of weeks. Sokka would be in Kyoshi as much as he could, but it would not be very often. Suki knew that she would be able to handle her children on her own, but she could not stand being away from her husband for too long. Their relationship always had distance to it, even after the war had ended. She was stationed to help guard Zuko and Sokka was off with Aang and Katara. A part of Suki thought that marriage would sore this wound in their relationship, but they both knew that that just would not happen.

All of these thoughts jumbled into Suki's mind, clustering up her brain. Without warning and much to her own surprise, she scrunched her face tightly as hot tears rushed quickly down her face. The cheeky grin on her husband's face changed drastically to a look of total shock as Suki busted into tears. She hated crying. Especially in front of Sokka. But she couldn't help it this time around.

"Wha-? Oh, Suki, I'm sorry—I wasn't implying that you're not fun anymore, in fact, you're _really_ fun! And you're not old! Far from it, honey! Aang is older than you and you look a flameo lot better than him!" Sokka bent down to Suki's level, clutching her face in between his warm palms.

"No—no, it's n-not t-that." Suki looked into Sokka's dark eyes as he tried to wipe away her tears in a rapid speed.

"Then why are you upset? I know we've been married for ten years now, but women are still confusing to me, believe it or not." Sokka was expecting some sort of reaction from Suki after trying to joke around with her, but he still had no response besides tears continuing to flow down her face. He gently guided her over to their bed, plopping down with his wife in his lap.

Suki closed her eyes and managed to take a deep breath, knowing that she needed to get what she wanted to say off her chest. As soon as she opened her eyes, she saw her husband looking even more concerned.

"Do you wanna go home? I'll do whatever you want to do, honey. I just want you to be happy." Sokka planted a kiss to Suki's cheek, brushing back her auburn hair in a calming manner.

"No, no, I want to stay here. This vacation has been the most fun I've had with you in a long time. It's just…" She took another deep breath. "It's just…things are going to change…_again_…in a little over a month."

Sokka gave his wife a puzzled look.

"What do you mean by that?"

"I mean that I'm moving to Kyoshi Island with the kids for Atka's warrior training, and you're going to be away, too. We knew this would happen eventually, but I didn't expect it to be so soon. We've been away from each other so much over our years together, that I guess I finally got comfortable being in the same place with you every single day."

Sokka frowned deeply at what Suki had just said. This had been bothering himself to the point of some sleepless nights over the past few weeks. He agreed with his wife that he too had finally gotten used to what should be a 'normal' marriage, as in where husband and wife were always together, but for them it was different. It always had been much to their distaste. But it was part of who they were as individuals. They were both leaders and wanted to make a difference in the world. Even though the war had ended, things were still difficult.

"We knew this would be hard, Suki. We talked about it before we got married," Sokka said calmly, still stroking her hair in between his long fingers. "But you know what? We make it work, no matter what. Always. That's what makes our bond so strong, our love so strong…we always come back for each other." Sokka gave her a firm squeeze, trying himself not to let his emotions get to the best of him. "Spirits know that I love you, Atka, and Tikani more than _anything_ in the entire universe and beyond. I want our little girl to become a strong warrior like her mother. I won't deny her the opportunity to train with such an elite group of honorable women with you as her master. She deserves the best. And I want to be there for as much as I can for it, so I swear to you that I will be, my love." Sokka pressed his lips firmly to his wife's forehead, holding back his own set of tears now. "I promise you that I will be there as much as I can. I want you all now to come first."

"But for us coming first, at times you'll have to look into our best interest. As in our children's interest. For their future." Suki pulled back slightly to look into Sokka's face, her own now tear stained. "I want Atka and Tikani to live in a world even more at harmony than it is now. You have such an important position, Sokka. You help make a difference each day, and our children will thank you for it in the future."

Sokka grinned and puffed his chest, not helping but feel somewhat proud of himself. Suki was right, everything he did was for their kids. She curled up closer to her husband, hugging him tightly as her lips pressed against his neck.

"You're right, you know…we always come back for each other," she murmured in a loving voice.

Boldly, Suki pushed herself upwards to lock her lips around Sokka's, grasping onto his body tightly. Sokka immediately reacted to his wife's actions, kissing her back passionately as his hands traveled up to hold her face in place. He laid down slowly onto the comfortable bed, now his touches traveling to Suki's hips. He murmured 'I love you' more times than he would care to admit, but Sokka couldn't help it after the conversation that just took place, and Suki repeated the same time after time again through the rest of the evening. They made love with as much they could possibly muster for the rest of the night, completely forgetting about their previous plans. Sokka dared to utter once they were finished for the night, "Hey, at _least_ I didn't want to go see the Ember Island Players…"

To make it up to Sokka (as if the night before had not been a reward enough), Suki agreed to go out the next evening. There was a Sake bar that sparked Sokka's interest immediately when they were out on the town. After they were done dining at a popular noodle restaurant that Zuko and Mai recommended, Suki finally caved in and decided that they both deserved at least one drink. Since they were recognized war heroes, nearly everyone in the bar offered to buy them drinks. At first, Suki refused. She had a feeling that she would need to watch over Sokka, who was eating all this attention up and gladly accepted the free drinks ("You know what free sake means? More presents for the rugrats, honey!"). Throughout the night, his vision became blurred and his judgment was not quite as clear as it should be, and Sokka claimed the next morning that he would never drink again…or at least that much again. Cactus Juice was nothing compared to cups and cups of Mango sake.

For the rest of their vacation, the couple mainly stayed in the firelord's home. They received about five letters from Atka and Tikani by messenger hawk not even halfway through their week of paradise, which made Suki miss her little ones more and more.

"We should have brought them for at least for a few days." Suki examined a picture drawn by Tikani of what looked to be a sky bison, with the name 'APPA' etched underneath the elementary drawing. The two were sitting in their bedroom late on Wednesday evening; the tall windows opened which allowed the soft oceanic breeze to make its way into the room. A few more drawings were scattered on the husband and wife's bed, including a short letter that Atka had written them with help from her Auntie Katara.

Sokka had his arm loosely wrapped around his wife's back, smiling with pride at the drawing of Momo his son made for them. "Yeah, I miss our little rugrats. Maybe we can ask Aang to bring them on Friday and we'll stay until Sunday afternoon. I don't think Zuko would mind, either." He picked up another drawing Tikani made their family, labeling each figure with their name. Suki was dressed in her Kyoshi warrior uniform while Sokka was in traditional Southern Water Tribe clothing, the words 'MOMMY' AND 'DAD' spelled out in a sloppy manner. Sokka could not help but laugh at the figure Tikani drew of Atka, though he knew he would have to reprimand his son about it. He painted his sister having a huge head and a somewhat scary looking appearance, her dark auburn hair sticking up everywhere and fangs for teeth. Sokka was pretty sure he had drawn a similar picture of Katara back when they were kids.

"This kid has got some spunk!" Sokka showed his wife the picture of their family, practically shoving it in her face as he continued to laugh. "I have no idea where he gets it from," he added jokingly.

Suki took the drawing out of his husband's clutches, trying to keep a straight face at the sight of Atka portrayed on paper. After a few moments of trying to be motherly and proper, Suki couldn't help but let out a tiny chuckle. She had to admit, it was funny…however, her little boy would definitely be having a talk with his father.

"He's definitely your son," Suki said, placing the drawing back onto the bed with the others.

"And you're definitely his mother, unless you have anything you'd like to tell me that I don't know about," Sokka teased, nudging his wife with his elbow.

Suki smiled up at her husband, brushing back his long hair with her delicate hand. She loved it whenever Sokka let his hair down from his usual wolftail. It was something that she only saw every night and morning while no one else did. Sokka gave her a cheeky grin as he glanced down, wiggling his eyebrows at her suggestively.

"What's on your mind?" he asked his wife, perking up a brow.

"Hmmmm, only that we have yet to try out that huge stone bath downstairs…oh, and we haven't had our spa day yet." Suki winked at Sokka, getting up from the bed in a slow manner as a way to show herself off.

"First of all, you're so right and we're doing that tomorrow, and secondly—race you to the bathhouse!"

And with that, Sokka hopped off the bed and practically leapt into the air while grabbing Suki's hand, busting open the door and running down the stairs. Suki couldn't stop laughing at her husband, feeling as if she were fifteen again running through the firelord's old house trying to find a room for privacy with her then boyfriend. She could have sworn she saw a glimpse of a younger Sokka as well as they passed by long mirrors down in the hallways of the vacation house, his smile the biggest she had seen it in a long time.

And that was why when Suki confirmed to Sokka that she was pregnant about three weeks later, her husband did not even try to deny it. He took Suki into his arms, pressing a kiss to first her soft lips and then down to her lower stomach, as he did when she told him she was expecting two times before.

"I'm coming with you to Kyoshi Island," Sokka stated firmly after giving her belly a kiss. He kept a hand on the spot, his other under his wife's chin.

Suki immediately looked taken aback, not expecting Sokka to say that at all.

"But, Sokka, you have dut—"

"My main duty is to be a father and husband. I can be a delegate for both the Southern Water Tribe and Kyoshi. We can travel together—as a family. I'm not leaving you three, or should I say four." He gave her stomach a gentle pat, placing yet another kiss to her lips. "Zuko can deal with it," Sokka added in between the kiss, making Suki giggle as their lips touched.

"Only if you think that's truly the right thing to do…" Suki whispered after their kiss broke, their lips still only inches away from each other.

"I don't think, I _know_. Now come on! Let's go tell the rugrats that there's gonna be another one of them!"


	2. Kyoshi Mornings

So much had changed over the years. Some things for the worse but most things were for the better. Sokka liked to remind himself of this especially when he was experiencing stressful situations, and _man_, had things been difficult lately. Although the movement toward peace between the four nations had made much progress through the years that did not mean that things were perfect. Sokka had been assisting Zuko, Aang, and his sister since the end of the war to help develop and strengthen peace, yet it was starting to wear on the now twenty year old. He had been visiting Earth Kingdom lands that had been under the Fire Nation's rule for years along with his wife for the past year. They did this to regain order within the towns and spread word of a new beginning, but some places tended to be more agreeable than others.

Sokka could have kissed Zuko when he granted his friend a week off. The water tribe native desperately needed some relaxation and just some time together with Suki…and their baby girl. Suki had been stationed to help protect the new Fire Lord along with a few other Kyoshi warriors for past few years, so distance was no longer an issue between the husband and wife. Suki was not on patrol as often as she used to be, acting first now as a mother to their one-year-old baby. She was still experiencing some stress, though. She was solely taking care of Atka while Sokka was busy in meetings during the day. She desired more time with her husband, although she wasn't complaining.

Sokka did as much as Suki did with taking care of Atka. It was still hard to believe that he was a father. While he was excited for their first baby during Suki's pregnancy, he still had his worries and doubts about himself. But from the first moment he saw Atka, he felt like a new man. And like his own father told him years ago, "Being a man is knowing where you're needed most," became words that Sokka swore he would live by. He would always let Suki sleep whenever their baby would cry in the middle of the night, never letting her even lift her head from off the pillow. At one point Atka became sick, which scared Sokka more than a million Sparky Sparky Boom men combined. He stayed home with Suki to help nurse their baby back to health.

The two decided they would spend part of their time off at their home on Kyoshi Island. The little house had originally belonged to Suki and few of her warrior friends back when they were younger. Now the quaint home was solely only her and Sokka's for whenever they stayed at the girl's village, which was a few times out of the year. The two of them did not mind moving from home to home; in fact, it was a nice feeling knowing that there was a place waiting for them during their busy travels. Sokka had to admit that their Kyoshi house was his favorite. Their hut in the Southern Water Tribe was small and cozy, but he hated to see Suki shiver from the fierce bitterness of the cold. Even though he had spent most of his life thus far in the South Pole, Sokka had a hard time bracing the temperature now. He much preferred the weather in the Fire Nation (who would have ever thought that of him?), having grown an appreciation for warmer weather.

Sokka watched in secret from the porch at his wife and child in the back of the house. Sokka's favorite part about their Kyoshi home was that it built in front of a small cavern that had a small waterfall into a little body of water in the back. The scenery outside took the cake. Suki was dressed in swimwear quite similar to the kind she wore when they visited Ember Island with all of her dark brown hair placed on the top of her head in a flawless bun. Sokka could hear her twinkling laugh from where he stood, making his heart practically flutter just from the sound. His wife carefully had their baby placed on her exposed hip, arms cradling around the little girl, who tiny bun that matched her mother's. Suki was standing in the small pool of crystal clear water, showing Atka the cavern's waterfall. The one year old pointed to it out of curiosity, her tan face scrunched up in confusion up at her mother. Whenever Atka would do this (and it seemed to be often), Suki always told Sokka that their baby carried after him in the facial expressions department. Sokka did not even try to deny it; however, everything else about Atka except for her lush, Water Tribe skin color was the spitting image of Suki. Sokka was lost in the gaze of his girls, smiling like the goof he was at the sight of Suki giving a gentle kiss to Atka's temple. Man, how did I get so lucky? He thought to himself, watching as Atka still gave her mother a puzzled look. Suki walked closer to the waterfall in order to let her baby touch the clear blue liquid, coaxing Atka's pudgy little hand to feel the coolness of it. The baby giggled loudly and grew a happy smile as she felt the water, causing Sokka to grin even more. That was another thing Suki said Atka attributed from her father; his laughter.

Sokka decided then to join his little family, descending from the shadows of the elaborate porch into the light of the beautiful morning. Atka turned her attention to the splashing footsteps from Sokka walking over to them in the pool, smiling brightly and showing off the few teeth she had. She let out an excited noise mixed with a few giggles, causing Suki to turn her head to see what her baby was looking at. She smiled as well at just the sight of her husband, blushing slightly at his lack of clothing. He wore only some white cloth covering his bottom half.

"Well, it looks like somebody finally decided to wake up," Suki teased, turning to face her husband. Atka reached her arms out toward Sokka, kicking her feet as she began to squirm in her mother's arms.

"Yeah, I figured I should grace you with my presence," Sokka teased back, bending down to give his wife a tender peck on the lips. "Good morning, my love," he whispered lovingly against her mouth before giving her another kiss. Atka then began to squirm and fidget with more force in Suki's embrace. She was also making impatient noises to get her father's attention.

"Someone seems to want you," said Suki in what Sokka deemed as her 'motherly voice,' trying to keep a grip on Atka.

Suki handed over their daughter to her husband carefully, who had his arms ready for his baby girl.

"And good morning to you, my little warrior!" Sokka held up his baby, pressing her forehead to his own before giving her a loud, overdramatic smooch on her cheek. The baby laughed merrily and flapped her pudgy arms up and down, causing her parents to light up with joy. "I think it's time to—BABY BEND!"

Suki laughed herself, covering her mouth to control her giggles as Sokka began to spin around Atka securely in his grasps.

"Uncle Aang would be so proud of your baby bending, Atka!" Sokka gave his daughter another loud smooch on her scrunched up face, giggling even harder than before.

The two of them shinned beautifully in the sun, their matching skin tones and overall looks of joy and laughter absolutely glowing. It was moments like these that made everything worth it to the Kyoshi Warrior; all of her training, the war, being locked in prison, the traveling. Growing a family with the man she knew was her other half made all of her past and present struggles worth it.

"I'm sure baby bending takes up a lot of energy, how about we get some breakfast?" Suki said, stepping out from the cool water.

"No need to ask me twice." Sokka readjusted Atka to have her cradled in his strong arms, following behind his wife. "I know there are some mushed up bananas with your name written all over them, Attie. They're all yours, of course. But one day when you're old enough, you'll actually be eating good food...just don't eat Auntie Katara's cooking..."

Suki rolled her eyes lovingly as Sokka went on and on about food with their baby,

grabbing hold of his muscular arm as they made their way into the house.


	3. First Date

The light breeze felt peacefully refreshing to Suki as she wandered around the tranquil gardens near The Jasmine Dragon. She had to admit, Ba Sing Se was a wonderful city. It was fast paced and busy, yet there were places to relax. And boy, did she need relaxation. Just to think, a few weeks ago she was risking her life on Fire Nation airships…the world could have been a very different place if things hadn't turned out the way that they did. The Avatar scored a major victory, and even though there was still much to be done to rebuild a harmonic world, just having some moments of pure peace was all that mattered to Suki at the time.

The girl sat down near a koi pond to take in the moment. She dipped a few of her pale fingers into the water, feeling the fish brush against her flesh with their tickling whiskers and scales. Suki breathed in and out calmly as she closed her eyes and stretched out on the slabs of concrete on the ledge of the pool. The garden smelled so fragrant, the flowers so fair…this truly was Suki's favorite place in the entire city…

Suddenly, she felt something moist and wet on her forehead, making her jump in surprise. Suki opened her eyes to the sight of her boyfriend next to her, putting his hands up in surrender and biting down on his lower lip.

"I'm sorry!" Sokka blubbered quickly in his usual manner. "I wasn't trying to scare you—you just looked so…pretty…sitting there." He blushed softly, scratching the back of his neck. "I couldn't resist…"

Suki's heart barely calmed down at the sight of Sokka, her own cheeks flushing slightly as her lips crept up into a loving smile. He was dressed still in his Earth Kingdom green robes, looking as suave as ever, with his right arm behind his back then. Green really did suit him. Suki was used to seeing him clad in his Water Tribe attire, but she did enjoy him wearing her nation's colors. His leg was no longer wrapped up in bandages yet he still had some trouble walking at times, going at a much slower pace than usual. Sokka complained at times that his back hurt as well from the nasty fall he and Toph encountered on the airship, which made Suki worry. In the evenings whenever the two would sneak into each other's bedrooms, Suki always made sure she would rub his back and make him feel better in 'other' ways…

"You've found my hiding spot," the warrior teased with a wink. Suki gave her boyfriend a sweet smile, moving her hand to touch his knee in attempt to calm him down.

Sokka began to scratch the back of his neck again with his free hand, looking a little nervous. He gulped it down quickly though, replacing his worried face with a confident flair and killer smile that got Suki's heart to practically melt. He had to keep his sense of 'aloofness', after all.

"I noticed that you come her a lot—not that I stalk you or anything," Sokka began to move his right arm from behind him and standing up in front of his girlfriend. "So, this is for you, malady—"

Sokka unveiled a dark pink Hibiscus flower, putting it in front of Suki's face. The girl immediately lit up and cupped her fingers around the flower carefully as to not break it, closing her eyes to smell it's alluring aroma. She couldn't help but feel warm inside at Sokka's cliché yet sweet gift. No one had ever given her flowers before, and if it had to be anyone, she would want it to be him.

"Oh, Sokka, it's lovely!" Suki took the flower from him, bringing it to her heart as it beat wildly beneath her chest. "Thank you! Hibiscus is my favorite, how did you know?"

Sokka looked pleased with himself, standing up a little straighter and taller with this confidence boost.

"Instincts probably. So, I guess that means you'll go out to dinner with me tonight," he said, crossing his arms as his eyebrow perked up.

Suki blushed again, though she kept her cool. She stood up in front of her boyfriend, eyeing him as she fiddled the hibiscus behind her ear.

"Hmmm…you mean, like a _date_?" she asked slyly, cracking a somewhat seductive smile as she crossed her arms behind her back.

"Well, yeah." Sokka's face grew red again, a thought suddenly striking him. "I guess this would be our first official date..."

The boy just realized this, looking a little sheepish in front of his girlfriend as his blush grew brighter. Suki pressed her fingers against her chin in a thoughtful stance.

"You're right, it _will_ be our first date…" Suki bit down on her lip, a particular thought striking her. "I think we've broken a few rules where dating is concerned..." she mused, walking up closer to Sokka and putting her arms around his neck.

Suki couldn't help but let out a tiny giggle as she noticed Sokka blushing furiously at what she just said.

"_Suki!"_ Sokka said in an embarrassed tone as his face turned entirely red. However, he did wrap his arms around her waist, bringing her closer to his body.

Their relationship hadn't exactly been kosher to what 'normal' couples experienced. With the war raging on and not knowing if they'd wake up safe and sound the next morning (or if they would make it out alive in the end), the two did not waste anytime where physical aspects was concerned. They were each other's firsts, having planned it pretty much the moment they made it safely away from Azula at the Western Air Temple. Although the location and company nearby in other tents wasn't ideal (and not to mention Zuko nearly ruining it all), the two made it work. It turned out to be wonderful in the end run, and neither one regretted it. What with the candles and flowers Sokka surprised Suki with and not to mention the eagerness of the two, their first time making love was memorable for sure.

Sokka managed to calm himself down quickly after Suki's tease. He stood up straighter and curled his fingers around his girlfriend's chin, leaning down so their lips were merely inches apart.

"So, what do you say?"

"Yes!" Suki said excitedly, some butterflies forming in her stomach.

"Excellent." Sokka bent down to give her a lasting kiss to her lush lips, parting his own slightly to give the moment more depth. "Meet me in front of Iroh's shop at sunset. I have the whole night planned out for us!''

"Of course you do, _plan guy._" Suki stood on her tiptoes to place a sweet kiss on her boyfriend's cheek. "I can't wait," she whispered now against his lips before locking them together again.

Much to Sokka's delight, all of his plans ended up following through. His heart nearly stopped at just the sight of Suki in front of the Jasmine Dragon before the date begun. She dressed up in green robes with pink flower emblems imprinted in the fabric, the hibiscus still tucked behind her ear to match her dress. Her short hair framed her face perfectly, which was decorated with more make up than she usually wore when not on warrior duty. Suki laughed at the goofy, lovesick expression her boyfriend wore, taking her face into her palms to kiss him for just being so adorable.

The couple's evening started with a quiet dinner at a local noodle cuisine that Sokka researched, then a walk around the upper ring, to the gardens, a visit to a dessert stand, and finally back to Iroh's shop to finish the evening off with some tea. The two had no moments of silence throughout their night together. They were filling up their conversations with laughs, kisses, and just getting to know each even better.

The Jasmine Dragon was empty except for Sokka and Suki. Iroh offered to keep the shop open just for them for as long as they wanted that night. The two sat across from each other, sharing a pot of green mint tea, which was Suki's very favorite blend. She sipped on her hot tea while Sokka told stories of his and Katara's childhood together, mainly how he would tease her.

"Did you really convince her that your dad turned into a polar bear dog?" Suki asked skeptically, quirking a brow at her boyfriend as she blew on her third cup of tea. "She's seems to clever to have actually believed that."

"Katara got smarter through the years. But at four years old she was pretty gullible. Dad thought it was pretty funny though!" Sokka took a gulp of his tea to pause from talking so much. "So," he wiped his chin as some tea dribbled down it. "What about you? Did you ever try to convince your mom that you were actually Avatar Kyoshi or something?"

Suki felt her stomach sink and her ears turn hot. She faked a smile, placing her cup near her lips.

"Oh, no. I wasn't really like that as a child," she muttered, trying to think of a way to change the topic. But Sokka wouldn't have that.

"C'mon, Suki!" he jeered, crossing his arms. "You must have some funny stories from when you were a kid! I bet your parents have loads—speaking of that, you've met my family, when am I gonna met your mom and dad?"

Knowing there was no way out of this conversation now, Suki put down her tea and placed her hands in her lap. She averted her boyfriend's gaze as a sad feeling washed over her entire body.

"You won't…" the Kyoshi girl murmured quietly.

Sokka simply perked up a brow in confusion as he noticed Suki ignoring his presence.

"Uhhh…what do you mean?" he asked with a deep frown, a knot forming in his stomach. _You messed something up! You blew it! But…how?_

Suki took a deep breath before looking back up at Sokka, her face looking paler than usual and a sad smile on her face.

"I know that I should have told you before, but I guess I just never knew when to mention it or how to say it. But it's pretty simple. I'm, well…I'm an orphan."

Sokka gaped at his girlfriend for a moment in disbelief before shaking his head to pull himself together. He reached over the table to hold Suki's hands, firmly grasping them into his warm palms. He squeezed her hands, the girl returning the gesture back as she looked sadly at Sokka.

"Aw, Suki, I'm…I'm sorry, I—"

Suki shook her head and formed a tiny smile, pulling his hands close to her chest.

"No, don't be sorry. I'm _sorry_. I just didn't tell you before." Suki took another breath, preparing herself to talk about this dreaded topic. "I was found one night swaddled in a blanket at the statue of Avatar Kyoshi. I looked to be only a few days old."

"So, you really _are_ a descendent from Kyoshi," Sokka teased, breaking a hand away from Suki's so he could caress her cheek. He smiled at her lovingly, trying his best not to make her upset. This was obviously a sensitive topic for her, like how he did not like to speak about the passing of his mother.

Suki laughed softly, leaning into Sokka's touch. It suddenly felt a lot easier to tell him about her past.

"Who knows, I could be," she teased back. "Anyway, Oyaji and his wife, Mayumi, took me in and cared for me. Mayumi was the Kyoshi Warrior's leader and she taught me everything I know. I looked up to her so much. She passed away a few years ago, but before she did, she named me the new leader. I considered her to be my mother in a way."

"It would have been an honor to meet her," Sokka said gently, truly meaning it. Suki gave him a small smile as he leaned forward to give her forehead a kiss. "If she helped shape you into the amazing girl you are today, then I think having her as your mother figure was meant to be."

"I think the same thing." Suki felt her cheeks become warm at how gentle and sweet Sokka was being to her, her breathing becoming slower as his lips lingered at her forehead. "Hey—this tea isn't going to finish itself," she said changing the subject, cupping her tea. He would let Suki finish her childhood story another time; she let out what she wanted to for now, which was perfectly alright with him.

Sokka laughed as he gave his girl another peck on the forehead, sitting back down in his seat.

"So, is today all that you hoped and dreamed it would be?" he asked, crossing his arms, trying to look cocky.

"Oh, and more." Suki giggled, her cheeks blushing as she looked back on her evening. "You know, it doesn't _have_ to end here…" she added, giving Sokka a wink before sipping her tea slowly.

Catching on quickly, the Water Tribe boy wiggled his brows suggestively.

"Don't worry, I put that in our agenda, too—"

"Sok_ka!_"

"Kidding, kidding! Well…_kinda_…"

Suki giggled more, putting down her tea as she stood up from the table. She grabbed Sokka's hands, helping him up from his seat eagerly.

"I think this is going against traditional first date rules again."

"Well, we aren't very traditional daters, now are we?"

"I'm fine with that."

"Then how about this—I love you."

Suki paused and looked up at her boyfriend with a surprised, yet happy expression. Her stomach fluttered excitedly with butterflies and her heart felt as if it were about to burst from her chest. She quickly attached herself to Sokka, hugging him tightly.

"I love you, too." She squeezed him tighter, his natural instinct hugging her back just as closely.

Sokka smooched his girlfriend's cheek as she then grabbed hold of his arm, the two walking out of the Jasmine Dragon with flushed cheeks.


	4. A Death for Life: Part 1

The husband and wife of six years along with their toddler were traveling to Sokka's childhood home with the plan of settling there for a few months. Sokka needed to check on his tribe for his councilman duties, and since Suki was already seven months pregnant, it made sense to live there until the new baby was a few months old. Also, Sokka's Gran Gran had not been doing well according to his father in a recent message. She most likely would not make it through the end of the year, which made Sokka and Suki's decision to move to the Southern Water Tribe easier to make. Gran Gran also expressed how she wanted to see her grandson's new baby before she passed. The whole situation was hard for Sokka, having expressed to Suki on multiple occasions that he wished he had spent more time with her over the years. As much as he did not want to admit that his Gran Gran's time was almost up, he and Suki wanted to make her final wish come true. They set up a plan with Katara to serve as Suki's midwife in the South Pole, that way she could also be present if their Gran Gran passed soon after the new baby was born.

Even after years of visiting, Suki still wasn't used to the cold climate of the Southern Water Tribe. She was always bundled up in extra furs courtesy of her husband, which was now more of a hassle due to her very pregnant stature. They traveled by ship to the South Pole and the journey had not been ideal. Suki was getting seasick easily what with her pregnancy and Atka was getting antsy from just being on a boat for almost a week. Suki didn't blame her, she as well as getting tired of just being on a ship for days. The food wasn't the best either, which was probably Suki's biggest complaint of all. Boy, did this baby bring out the appetite in her. She often teased Sokka that this baby was for sure his on account of how hungry she was all the time, making her husband laugh and puff up with pride.

Once they arrived at the South Pole, they were greeted wholeheartedly by what seemed to be the entire Southern Water Tribe. People cheered and clapped when Sokka and Suki walked off the ship, greeting them like the war heroes they were. Atka was terribly shy in front of a lot of people, like any toddler would be, hiding her face into her father's chest as her parents comforted her with soothing words and gestures. Hakoda was in front of the crowd, his arms wide open and a smile on his now older face. Suki held onto Atka as the father and son clapped each other's backs and hugged for a few moments.

"It's so good to see you, Dad," Sokka said, sounding just like he did when he was younger. No matter where he was, Sokka always couldn't help but miss his father.

"You too, my son," Hakoda gave Sokka another clap on the back before turning his attention to Suki and his granddaughter with a grand smile. "Suki, it's good to see you again, too. You look very well, how many months are you now?"

Suki gave a kiss on the cheek to the chief as he picked up Atka from her, who hugged onto him with all her might as she exclaimed "Grandpa!" with delight.

"It's good to see you again, too, Hakoda. I'm seven months if you can believe it. I feel like it's been more than that! I feel as big as a warship balloon." The warrior placed her hands on her plump stomach as Sokka swung his arm around her, a smug look on his face.

Hakoda laughed as he hugged his granddaughter tightly.

"Well, you don't look it. But I remember Kya felt the same way, especially when she was pregnant with Sokka. She practically out ate the whole tribe, she was always hungry during that pregnancy."

"I wonder why," Suki perched a brow up at her husband and put a hand on her hip. Sokka merely gave out a laugh and touched his wife's large stomach.

"I'm telling you, honey! It's a boy for sure!" Sokka exclaimed excitedly. "It's gonna be a mini me!"

"We don't have anyway of knowing until the baby comes," Suki chided him, though she wore a bright smile. She too hoped it would be a boy, which Sokka knew. He simply rolled his eyes and nudged her shoulder, giving her another smug look.

The rest of the day consisted of Hakoda showing his son and daughter-in-law the updates that had been made in the tribe. Since more troops had come back home after the war had ended, the population understandably grew more in their village. The overall space was more taken up with more huts and even some markets now consisting of basic supplies, fish and other sorts of food. A hut specially meant for political and tribe meetings had also been built in the center of the tribe, which had been dedicated to all those who fought in the war.

"Everything looks really great, Dad," Sokka said as they stopped at a market to purchase some fish for lunch. Suki watched over Atka as she and some little girls her age played in the snow, talking to some other mothers also watching their children.

"I saved the best for last," Hakoda said offhandedly to Sokka, handing over a few Water Tribe coins to the merchant.

"What? Do we have a restaurant or something now?" Sokka guessed jokingly, having no clue what his father was suggesting. He grabbed the wrapped up fish from the merchant, giving him another coin as a tip.

Hakoda laughed, clapping his son on the back as they walked back toward Suki and Atka.

"You'll see, son."

They traveled by foot through the thick, white snow to the mystery destination. Sokka carried Atka in his strong arms with Suki by his side as Hakoda lead the way. They passed by several newly built huts that seemed to grow bigger each step they took. It truly was a different place from when Sokka was a boy growing up here, yet he loved how evolved the tribe was becoming. They stuck to their traditional roots, but with some changes.

"We're almost there," said Hakoda as new, hard snowflakes began to fall from the sky.

"How is Gran Gran? Where is she?" Sokka asked, interally fearing the worst.

"To be honest, not well." Hakoda gave his son a sullen look, his eyes filled with remorse. "Some days are better than others. Pakku is by her side every minute of every day. We don't know when the time will come, but she'll be so happy to see you all. She's near where we are going—-here we are."

Hakoda gestured to a large hut next to three others, the doorway guarded by heavy pelts of fur. It looked to be made out of fine wood, which was new for the tribe.

"Welcome to your Water Tribe home." Hakoda smiled to his son and daughter-in-law, who both had their jaws dropped at the sight.

"Hakoda, you didn't have to—" Suki began, a hand up to her lips in sight of the beautiful hut.

"We agreed to stay with you until we left!" Sokka interrupted, adjusting a sleeping Atka in his arms.

Hakoda put his hands up in front of him, simply laughing cheerfully with a satisfied grin on his rough face.

"You're not telling me you won't be staying here again," he explained. "You all need a home of your own. You have a daughter and another one on the way. Katara and Aang have a hut, I have one, and your Gran Gran and Pakku do as well. We're all together over here. It makes sense, son."

Sokka restrained himself from running and tackling his father with a huge hug, simply because of his sleeping child in his arms. He shook his head in amazement as Suki beamed more at their newest addition to their homes. As if reading her husband's mind, she walked over as fast as she could to her father-in-law and gave him probably the biggest hug she had ever given him.

"Thank you," was all she could say with much gratitude in her voice.

—

The snow was becoming heavier two months months later. Gran Gran was still alive, though she was getting weaker and weaker by the day. They visited her nearly every day just in case, and she seemed to be happier at just the sight of her grandson and his own family. She beamed at the sight of Atka, always saying how much she looked like Suki and how she reminded her of Katara when she was a little girl. Even though he was busy with his councilman duties of checking on the town, Sokka made sure his now nine-month pregnant wife and daughter were wrapped up as warmly as possible, making them a few new fur pelts when he went hunting with his father. He had gotten much better at hunting through the years, having learned more patience as well as skills from Hakoda. Suki laid on her back as her husband wrapped his arms around her swelled up belly, his face tucked into her neck. A little coal pot was still flaming in the center of their bedroom, keeping that part of their hut toasty.

"Are you awake still?" Sokka asked in a soft whisper, his lips moving against the flesh of her pale neck.

"Mmhmm…" Suki kept her eyes closed, finally feeling warm since they came to the South Pole. "Barely, though."

"Me, too. I'm kinda cold, though…"

"I'm actually pretty warm for once," Suki yawned, bringing a hand up to her lips.

"You know, we'll both get warmer if we take our clothes off and—"

Suki shot her eyes open just to roll them, turning her face to Sokka with an unimpressed expression.

"Sok_ka_! Your daughter is in the next room! And I'm pretty sure this baby will come any day now, we don't want to trigger anything," the Kyoshi native scolded at her husband, who simply laughed at her gleefully.

"Well, that didn't stop you before!"

"That was different! She was a tiny baby when we did that. And we never risked doing, you know, when I was about to give birth any day—"

"Mommy, Daddy?" a little voice echoed from the entrance of the room.

Sokka perked up immediately from the bed and Suki opened her eyes, turning her head towards the voice of their daughter. The going on four-year-old stood there visibly shaking with her teeth chattering. The little bun in her dark brown hair that Suki made for her was coming out of place. She was much like Suki in that cold weather did not suit her. Sokka jumped out of bed and practically bolted over to his little girl, picking her up into his strong arms.

"Attie, what's wrong?" He gave her a kiss to her forehead as she clung to him, still shivering.

"Are you cold, baby?" Suki asked, trying to sit up a little, which proved to be difficult with her plump stomach and layers of fur.

Akta nodded as she laid her head into Sokka's chest, her father cupping her cold cheek.

"Come sleep with mommy and daddy, we'll keep you warm," Sokka whispered gently before giving her a kiss on the cheek.

Sokka kissed his daughter's forehead again before laying her down between him and Suki in the bed. Atka immediately crawled over to her mother's tummy, placing her pudgy little hands near Suki's bellybutton.

"Is baby warm?" Atka asked in a sleepy yet concerned voice, rubbing Suki's stomach. A small kick was made from the baby from their sister's touch.

"Yes, baby is very warm." Suki stroked her little girl's dark brown hair as Sokka draped Atka in the fur blankets. "Let's make you comfortable now."

Sokka snuggled up closely to his daughter, rubbing her arm up and down as Suki continued to stroke her hair. They both felt some relieve once Atka stopped shaking, the little girl's hand still on her mother's stomach.

"Is baby coming soon?" Atka asked in a concerned voice. She was very excited to be a big sister and was getting impatient with Suki.

"Probably in a few days, sweetie. We all just have to be patient," Suki cooed, reaching down to give her daughter a tender kiss on top of her head.

"Hey Attie, did I ever tell you the time that Momo did some earth bending?" Sokka whispered with a grin.

The little girl's eyes widened and her chapped lips curled up into a happy smile.

"No!" Atka giggled, flopping over to face her father. "Momo can do that?"

"Well, not really, but we convinced some bad guys that he could!" Sokka explained in an excited voice, making Atka giggle more gleefully.

Suki grinned as Sokka cradled his daughter into his arms as he gave his wife a wink. Atka loved hearing stories about her parents' adventures, and they always proved to make her fall asleep after a long, riveting tale. Suki continued to stroke Atka's dark brown hair with a lazy hand, surrendering herself to sleep as Sokka quietly gave their daughter a bedtime story…

That was until she felt her water break.

Suki immediately shot up into the air with wide eyes, her hands to her stomach. She wasn't in pain, merely just in shock that it was finally happening. A few minutes had passed and Atka was fast asleep, sucking her thumb against Sokka. The Water Tribe Native said his wife's name in panic, though quietly so he would not alarm or wake his baby girl.

"I'm okay, I'm okay," Suki said quickly just to reassure her husband. She managed to calm herself down in a short period of time just to make sure she would have clear head about everything. Besides, Sokka doesn't do well with births. He nearly had ten panic attacks over Atka alone, and not to mention Hope from the Serpent's Pass incident. "The baby is coming," she whispered, fearing the worst.

Instead of freaking out and screaming from sheer terror like she anticipated he would, Sokka had a blank look upon his face. He seemed as though he didn't believe her, or maybe he was just processing the news…

"Now?" he said, not quite sounding like himself.

"Yes."

Sokka took another brief moment to process this, finally breaking into what looked like a panicked grin. Obviously he was trying to hold back his anxiety, but was slowly failing. Suki took hold of his hand, placing it on her baby bump. She went over in her head the plan they came up with months ago.

"Sokka, I need you to go wake up Katara and Aang, and have Atka sleep in their hut. Have Katara come here, she said she would stay with me the whole time. Can you do that for me?"

After taking a deep breath, Sokka changed his look to a confident grin, leaning over Atka to give his wife a deep kiss. In that moment, Suki was very proud of him. He truly did grow up, even over the course of a few years.

"Yes, anything for you."


	5. A Death for Life: Part 2

Had it been days, months, years maybe? It seemed like it, but it had just been a very long ten hours. Sokka's hand could barely take anymore of Suki's strong grip and sharp nails digging into the flesh of his hand. However, he knew this time around to hold his tongue and not even dare the thought of mentioning to his wife that he was in pain. Last time that resulted in the Kyoshi Warrior nearly punching him in the face to 'show him some pain.' Hard working sweat was rolling down Suki's forehead and entire body as she sat up on the couple's bed, letting out cries of pain while tears flowed down her face. It truly did hurt Sokka by looking at just the sight of her. Katara served as the midwife as planned and an Acolyte who was once a nurse were the only ones in the room besides the two. As continuous contractions went through Suki's body, the worse she cried and yelled in suffering. Sokka, who sat on the bed with her, could merely hold her face to his chest and kiss her temple, telling her how strong she was and that their baby was almost there.

"I see a head, Suki!" Katara said loudly over the mother's cries. "Just one more push!"

"You're so close, honey. Just one more push and our baby will be here. You can do it!" Sokka kissed his wife's hand as she tightened her grip even more. He grimaced a little at the hard touch but let the pain subside quickly.

Panting heavily and beyond the point of trying to calm down, Suki flashed her husband what looked to be the tiniest of smiles as more tears welled up in her blue eyes. She then closed them and tensed up before giving her biggest push yet. The warrior's cry mixed with the one of a baby's. Sokka watched with an agape mouth as Katara grabbed hold of the newborn, bringing it up for the parents to see. A dark skinned infant that shimmed with evidence of birth opened its little mouth to gulp its first fresh breath of air, crying loudly throughout the hut's bedroom. Suki collapsed into Sokka's arms completely, now letting out what sounded like a laugh of relief as she stared lovingly at their baby. Sokka brushed back his wife's hair letting out a laugh himself, saying his wife's name aloud over and over again.

"It's a boy," Katara deemed with a huge smile on her face, now handing the newly deemed baby to the Acolyte, ready with supplies to clean the newborn.

Sokka put a hand to his forehead, now laughing even more with the upmost delight.

"A boy! A _boy_—a…boy." Sokka felt his own set of fresh tears streaming down his face, not even bothering to wipe them away. He turned to kiss Suki all over her face, tasting her salty tears and sweat.

"Did you hear that, Suki?" Sokka paused from smooching her to hold her face into his big palms. "We have a boy! A _son_!"

Suki smiled with her teeth showing up into her husband's eyes, crying tears now of pure joy. She didn't feel that she could form the words to speak of how happy she was, how thankful she was.

Sokka took her by the chin and planted a loving, passionate kiss to her lips, then stroked back her wet hair.

"I love you so much, Suki," he whispered into her ear, hugging her close. "I'm so proud of you."

Suki merely hugged her husband back, her body shaking from all the shock and work it had been through for hours. She then looked at her husband straight in his oceanic dark blue eyes, smiling widely.

"I love you, too," she managed to say in a very weak voice before giving him another kiss.

"He seems healthy, too." Katara had the newborn bundled up in warm blankets in her arms, bringing him to his parents. "Would you like to hold your son, Suki?"

Suki nodded and brought her arms out to take the baby from Katara, holding him as carefully as possible to her chest. The baby ceased from crying, although he was making little sounds as Suki pressed her damp lips against her son's forehead.

"Hi, Tikani…" the Kyoshi native whispered lovingly as she then cradled the newborn in her arms.

Katara tried to just let her brother and her friend have their little moment with their newborn, although she couldn't help but perk up at their boy's name.

"Wolf?" Katara smirked at her older brother, crossing her arms.

Sokka crossed his own arms and gave his sister a sly look as Suki gave her husband her own little smirk.

"Suki let me choose if we had a boy," he explained, then taking Tikani from his wife's arms. He gave his newborn a firm kiss to his squishy forehead. "It seemed only right." After all, the wolf was Sokka's spirit animal.

"Hey, son…" he whispered as the baby opened up it's dark eyes, staring in wonder at his father.

The newborn began to cry once more after his father held him for a few moments. Suki took Tikani from Sokka and adjusted the baby to her chest.

"Let's see if he's anything like Atka and—oh, no, he's good." The baby automatically latched it's wandering, hungry mouth to Suki. She held her son firmly as she nursed him, relaxing as Sokka put his arm around her.

"He is definitely your son. Hungry right out of the womb…imagine that," she joked, resting her cheek to her husband's side.

Sokka let out a laugh himself, pushing back Suki's sweaty hair as he watched her nurse their baby.

"I'm proud of him already," he teased in a quiet voice.

Suki relaxed more into the bed with her tired eyes closing. The bags under her eyes were very prominent and dark, showing how truly exhausted she was. She tried not to doze off as she nursed, though it was very tempting. Sokka had matching bags, though he was too happy to sleep now.

"Do you want to go tell Dad and Aang?" Katara asked, helping the Acolyte mix some herbal tea for Suki to drink.

"Of course, I know they are all eager to know," Suki answered softly as Tikani made sucking noises. She caressed the baby's patch of pitch-black hair as she nursed him.

Sokka nodded, picking his eyes up from his son to his little sister.

"Thanks, sis," he said in a sincere tone with a smile of appreciation. "For everything."

Katara returned the grin before opening the coverings of animal skin to exit the room.

"Suki, do you want to rest for a while? You deserve it, you've been through a lot." Sokka propped her more into the pillows as the baby ceased from its nursing.

"No," Suki answered quickly, popping open her closed eyes. "I need to stay awake for Tikani." She stifled a yawn.

"We can watch him. You need some sleep," Sokka interjected, taking the now sleeping baby out of Suki's arms into his own. He gave his son another kiss to the forehead, swaddling the baby snuggly in his arms.

Suki accepted the herbal concoction from the Acolyte, explaining that it would help her body feel better and less sore. She gave Sokka a disapproving look as she carefully sipped into the steaming cup of tea.

"No," she said again, more firmly this time with a gleam of don't-ask-me-again in her blue eyes.

"Okay, alright then. Suit yourself." Sokka smirked, relaxing more into the bed as well. He knew she would fall asleep eventually, just like she did after Atka's birth. The Acolyte then left the room, leaving the new parents alone with their newborn son.

Just then, a chorus of tribal horns and drums were heard from the couple's hut. It echoed off the glaciers of ice, the sound clear and joyous. Suki rose her brows in surprise as she gave Sokka a look of confusion, though her husband simply grinned proudly and let out a small laugh.

"Katara must have told the whole village," he explained as the music could still be heard. "We're more popular than you think," he teased, Suki still in awe of the horns and drums.

Sokka along with Katara did end up convincing Suki to take a nap in the late morning, much to Sokka's relief. Although Sokka wished to sleep along with his wife, he fought through his fatigue and took care of his son, which involved changing him a few times. Once Suki woke up she practically grabbed Tikani straight out of Sokka's arms and into her chest to feed her newborn, scolding Sokka that he let her sleep for too long.

Hakoda was one of Tikani's first visitors in the late afternoon. The chief did not even bother holding back any tears as he held his grandson in his arms. He reminisced Sokka's birth as he took note that Tikani looked almost identical to how his own son looked as a newborn, telling Sokka that his mother would have been proud.

Aang brought over Atka after dinnertime in the evening to visit the new baby. He told Sokka and Suki that their toddler was practically bouncing off the walls at the news that she was finally a big sister. After Uncle Aang visited his new nephew, they left Atka alone with her parents to see Tikani. The little girl gazed at the baby in Suki's arms with gleaming wonder in her dark water tribe eyes.

"Atka, this is Tikani, your baby brother," Sokka explained as he held Atka in his arms.

The toddler did not say anything for a few moments as she stared in concentration at the sleepy baby in her mother's arms. Suki gave her husband a smirk as they waited for Atka to talk. Although Sokka did not remember meeting his little sister for the first time, he imagined it went like this as well.

"What do you think of him, Attie?" Sokka asked as Suki propped the baby up closer to their daughter. Tikani then opened his little dark eyes up at his sister. Atka's own eyes widened at the sight, stretching out a pudgy hand to touch the newborn's cheek.

"He seems…squishy…" Atka finally said before breaking into a huge, happy grin. She let some giggles as she leaned down to give her baby brother a kiss to his forehead.

"Squishy!" she repeated excitedly, hugging onto her father with glee. "I love him!"

Sokka and Suki let out their own laughs at their daughter's response, Sokka giving Atka a tight hug back. As the family had their little moment together, Katara came running into the room with an alarmed expression on her face. The laughs immediately stopped at the sight, Sokka putting Atka down to go over to his sister.

"Katara, what's wrong?" he asked quickly, taking hold of his sister's shoulders.

His little sister gave her brother a frown as she caught her breath, some tears beginning to well in her eyes.

"It's Gran Gran…" Katara began to explain, trying not to sound frantic. "She…she keeps losing her breath, she—she isn't going to make it through the night, Sokka."


End file.
